What's Cooking: Rich and Rustic

By Jason Boyett

Friday

Aug 30, 2019 at 3:13 PM

“I wanted to present to Amarillo something different in this town,” says Chef Smajo Beckanovic about the recipes he contributed to this issue. The executive chef at Crush Wine Bar & Grill, Beckanovic first arrived in the U.S. as a refugee from the war-torn former nation of Yugoslavia. He drew from the familiar flavors of Eastern Europe in selecting these dishes. While unique, he says the simple recipes are perfect for entertaining and easy to prepare. “You don’t have to be a master chef – or even a chef – to make these at home,” he says.

The lamb rack is a traditional fall dish that reminds him of home. “I ate lamb all my life. It was my favorite as a child,” he says. The shrimp scampi paired with black squid ink pasta is another flavorful and visually appealing dish. Finally, his pan-seared branzino – a freshwater European sea bass – is prepared with the head still attached. “It has a very unique taste, very delicate and not fishy,” he says. Serving whole fish is an uncommon choice in the U.S., but it contains more flavor and is visually striking. Chef Smajo says branzino is among the best fish to prepare this way. “A lot of people will eat the cheeks of the fish. The meat is very tender.”

Grilled Lamb Chops

1 tablespoon fresh lavender buds

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced

1 teaspoon black pepper, coarsely ground

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons honey

6 sprigs fresh lavender

4 lamb loin chops (about 1 ½ pounds)

Gently rub lavender buds between index finger and thumb to release oils. Place in small bowl along with rosemary, pepper, garlic, salt and olive oil. Stir to combine. Pat lamb chops dry with paper towel. Rub herb mixture into lamb. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Meanwhile, combine honey with remaining sprigs of lavender in small saucepan. Gently heat until honey takes on the fragrance of the lavender, about 5 minutes over low heat. Sear lamb chops over hottest part of grill until nice crust forms on each side, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to cooler side of grill. Brush with lavender-scented honey and allow to cook for an additional 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate, loosely tent with foil, and allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 2 servings

Shrimp Scampi

1 pound large shrimp (about 24), shelled and deveined

1/4 cup dry white wine

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 cup leeks, chopped

12 ounces crab meat

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Heat oven to 425 degrees. In large bowl, toss shrimp with wine. In small bowl, mash butter with garlic, cheese, parsley, leeks, lemon juice and crab meat. Season butter with salt and pepper. Arrange shrimp side by side in single layer in ceramic baking dish and drizzle any accumulated juices on top. Spread scant teaspoon of seasoned butter over each shrimp. Bake shrimp for about 7 minutes, until almost cooked through. Remove shrimp from oven and turn on broiler. Broil shrimp about 6 inches from heat for 2 minutes, or until browned and bubbling. Serve immediately with pasta and vegetables.

Makes 4 servings

Whole Branzino

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

1 whole branzino (sea bass) fish, cleaned and deboned

2 fresh lemons, sliced

1/2 cup white wine

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves

1/4 cup chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley

2 lemon wedges

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil into large baking pan; add onion and season with salt and pepper. Place cleaned fish into baking pan and stuff cavity with 2 lemon slices and 2 tablespoons chopped parsley. Pour white wine and lemon juice over fish and sprinkle with remaining parsley. Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over fish. Bake until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork, about 25 minutes. Serve fish on platter and garnish with parsley and lemon wedges. Serve with vegetables and pasta of choice.

Makes 1 serving

Meet the Cook: Chef Smajo Beckanovic of Crush Wine Bar & Grill

Many of today’s most accomplished chefs spend their formative teenage years learning in a home kitchen or even apprenticing under an experienced cook. Smajo Beckanovic spent his teen years in a refugee camp in Croatia. He had grown up in the former nation of Yugoslavia but he and his family were forced to leave to escape the conflict there. Awaiting relocation, he subsisted amid the uncertainty and minimal comforts of the refugee camp for four years, from 1993 to 1997.

“It made me who I am to this day,” he says of that difficult period.

Having grown up cooking with his mother and grandmother, Beckanovic spent his childhood learning about food. He then spent his teen years dreaming about food. “We did not have anything. It was just refugee camp food – you don’t get much. Flavor was missing.”

So in 1997, when his family finally arrived in Houston, Texas, he knew he wanted to start a new chapter in his life by becoming a chef who used food and flavor to make people happy.

Beckanovic graduated from the private and prestigious Culinary Institute LeNotre in Houston and built his career at Prego, a stylish, modern Italian eatery in Houston’s upscale Rice Village. Eventually, he became a U.S. citizen, married, had children and eventually found his way to the Texas Panhandle for a two-year stint at Randy’s of Wildorado. He moved to Amarillo in 2013 and, last year, was named the executive chef at Crush.

“I bring a lot of Italian flavors and Eastern European flavors,” he says of his contributions to the casual, modern menu at Crush. “We have a lot of seafood, a lot of steaks. We cover everything. I try to bring something different and unique every week,” especially through the regular chef’s specials at the restaurant on Polk Street downtown.

Those unique flavors include the whole, pan-seared branzino and rack of lamb highlighted in this issue. Both have a connection to dishes he enjoyed as a child in Yugoslavia before conflict changed his life. “You can taste Eastern Europe in them,” he says.

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